Saii

Narus wasn't a hoaxer. Stalium was forced to listen while he waited for a clean shot. The traitor kneeled comfortably at the fire, regailing Siero with stories of his work. Names would crop up that Stalium could recognise, those of friends, of family. The old chief raged silently at Narus' half-blocked body. Stalium crept to the left a little, trying to work his way around the broad back of one guard to get a clear shot at Siero. At this point killing Narus would serve only as revenge. The spy had no secrets left to give. Siero on the other hand... The Orchans seemed to rely heavily on his judgement. The fat warlord's head would be a fine recompense for this night's work. Siero was concealed by the shadow of a large tent, but drew heavily on a pipe, which periodically lit his face red.

Heya, got your email. Not to put too fine a point on it but good news about Ent. I've got a fair bit on in the next week (career hunting and freelance journalism in between full-time job, plus spreadin local info about council house sell-offs in the UK ) but in between that I'd be up for writing again soon.

Okay I've finished editing my history of the lands, it comes down to 6500 words for that, and 6000 for the separate narrative storyline of the battle of portland (might end up shorter). I might also edit the story of Qast down (about 10,000 but will be shortened a great deal) which is a possible quest-generating offshoot from the main history. What I'll do now is post the history up in very short chunks every day (same sort of thing as Geelef did) to make it a bit easier to get through. First bit will be on Monday. 'The Battle of Portland' and 'Quast's creation' I'll do on a different thread once this one is finished.

This is a supporting story for the history of the lands, explaining what happened at Portland through the eyes of two of the combatants. It'll be done in small chunks like the histories. --------------------------- Folis and Salia Prologue There are two stories of the battle of Portland, which ended Selain's rise to ultimate power. One is the infamous tale of Salia, the other is that of Folis, a hero of the war. Salia's notes, written in a tree as he hid from the enemy, were retrieved and translated by his Satyr brethren, crumpled and damp with mud. Folis rasped his recollections to a few remaining warriors as he lay dying from his wounds. Between them the two tell of what happened in those frightening days, and our scholars have woven their words into a single tapestry.

Before I repost anything I seriously need to hear Ent's story first. The later stuff is okay cos it's not directly concerned with the beginnings of the world but the world creation aspect may have to radically changed or even dropped altogether. Battle of Portland I'll add a chunk on the end and send you direct if you like?

Hmm I did a story of a character named Qast a while back, he'd definitely count as a demigod but I think a rewrite was requested first, I'll have a look about that.

Yeah I am, though I may take a fair bit longer to do so (got a job and other commitments which are taking up alot of my spare time atm). Bewar with me I'll try and write some more next week.

Right sorry I haven't replied, million and one things to do and all that :oops:. The story is very much told along historical lines (as I say at the beginning, it's told as though two bard's tales have been woven together by historians), which is both why the language isn't too flowerly (historians not being fans of this sort of thing) and the characters are fairly simple (bards not being fans of complicated people 8)). I was thinking about adding some more details to the end, but chickened out cos it was already 6,000 words long and people were complaining. Selain's punishment.... I said he was banned I didn't say he wouldn't cheat . Yes I was planning to add a bit to the Satyr legend, though not too much, mostly just explaining how they got on the greatships with Gaia and where the remaining thousand or so went after the war.

Selain sued for peace shortly afterwards. He had no choice. His army was in tatters, supplies of food and the drugs he used to control his forces were running low, and an agreement from Elandria that she would join the struggle against him had finally been signed. The victorious Aluwenists were quick with their decision, accepting only his total surrender and dictating his punishment. Although his status as a God could not be taken from him (nor could it from Unolas), he was barred thereafter from taking an active role in the life of the Eternal Lands. Folis died shortly after the Orcs took the East bridge, and was carried by his few remaining kin to the Tahraji desert, where he was buried with all honour. He is regarded as a patron saint for warriors everywhere (the red and black is now often worn in his honour) while his spear, refashioned by Glilin and buried with the body, has become a relic of great potency. Salia was recaptured by the Orcs and put to death in a field execution just minutes after witnessing the fall of Folis. His weakness is a source of shame for the Satyr race and led to Glilin's intense dislike of Gaia.

War's end The heroism of Folis and his Centaurs was the turning point of the war. With thousands of Orcs stranded behind the collapsed West bridge, and astoundingly, another thousand dead from Folis' last stand, combined with the delay caused to the remaining Orc troops from that fight, Glydoc and Glilin were almost equal in number to Selain's troops, with superior warriors and the decided advantage of magic. Although Ogre shocktroops caused some fractures in the Dwarven line, the elderly Glilin showed immense courage in rallying them to his banner, and a counterattack from the deadly Dreagoni caused utter devastation in return. In under an hour Selain's troops had begun to weaken, and the addition of nearly one thousand Satyr charging into their flanks finally caused them to rout entirely. The remaining Orcs following hot on the Satyr's heels ground to a stop when they saw what was happening, and faced with overwhelming odds, withdrew from the battle. As reports filtered back about what had happened, it is reputed the normally unflappable Selain roared with such anger that his throne collapsed, much to the delight of his court.

Folis looked exhausted, barely able to catch breath enough to keep moving. Despite the heroic efforts of a few Satyr who still formed a circle around him, he was having to fight two or three Orcs at a time. Even the strange power that had carried him this far seemed to start losing its effect. Through what seemed to be an extra sense, the Orcs noticed his waning strength, and the hulkish green creatures grew bolder, pressing around him, bearing down upon him and his small remaining group of protectors. Even as the first Centaur fighter reached Folis, Salia could see it was too late, and a stray Orc blade cut deep into the hero's breast just moments before a parry and counterthrust from his comrade could land. With a sigh that seemed to shake the ground, Folis fell, and with his passing the Satyr troops could hold no longer. While Centaur skirmishers held the line for just a few more minutes to bring their dying leader from the fray, their panicked allies ran from the fight, heading towards the mouth of the Kamara pass.

Siero waved at a guard, who ran over hastily, eager to please. "Find me a map, and a couple of pints of the green stuff." Narus looked pleased, much to Stalium's surprise. What was the green stuff? Siero answered for him. "If you really are Narus, you must be gagging for some of this. Just in case you're not though, I'll tell you what it is and see how keen you are to drink it. The green stuff is a highly addictive potion designed by Selain himself. It gives us better reflexes, higher concentration levels and greater stamina. It is also highly addictive, so it makes sure you can't run away from us, as we are the only source of it for miles around. Even if you aren't Narus, you will have to follow us once you've drunk, or you'll get no more. The withdrawal symptoms are very, very nasty and eventually fatal. Understand?" Narus sneered. "The question is irrelevant." Siero smiled. "For your sake I hope so, because if you turn out to be a hoaxer giving us wrong information you shall die a horribly long and painful death."

The Orcs pressed home their advantage with an unstoppable momentum and began to gain ground. Folis and a small cadre of talented fighters near him were quickly left isolated in the middle of their bridge, as Satyrs at the front to tire and fall back. Salia checked on the forces rushing to Folis' aid. Fifty Centaur had raced ahead of the pack and would arrive in mere moments, the rest would be a few minutes more. Salia held his breath as the cavalry pushed their way through retreating Satyr bodies to try and rescue their leader.

Try not to be too harsh zsert, you aren't exactly perfect in your writing. In terms of grammar, spelling, sentence construction and punctuation I'd say he's your superior. Laying down marks is an invitation to others to do the same to you, and my friendly advice here is don't, or the temptation will be to flame.

Now he he stood, bare feet away from the single most effective weapon Selain had used in the campaign. Stalium unslung his bow silently, and drew his string slowly onto the short-range waepon. He was careful to make sure it was straight and balanced, he would only get one shot. He listened to Narus talking as he worked, marvelling at the self-possession and single-minded manner of the young buck as even Siero was reduced to a respectful silence. "You don't have much time, they are already ahead of you and move further away, to the Western docks in support of the Aluwenists. They will cross out of your reach if you wait. They have exceptional leaders and their warriors are faster than yours, but they have children with them who they will be anxious to protect. You will be able to surround them once you've caught them."

Yeah sorry, I'm a journalist by trade so it's something of a habit :oops: ------------------------- *** SALIA heard Folis shout, and saw the bloodstained Centaur gallop at the head of less than a thousand Satyr into the first line of Orcs, hacking and slashing with furious intensity. His heroism was inspirational. Small and unsure, every nearby Satyr ran with him to meet the massive battle scarred Orcs who towered over them, and for a few moments pushed the oncoming horde backwards. But even inspired by Folis, they were weak, and with every passing moment their inexperience and frailty became more apparent. The Orcs were better fighters and for every one that fell, many Satyr would crash to the ground, lifeless. The defenders were outnumbered and outclassed. Only the presence of Folis himself swinging, punching, biting, kicking and goring his way through the Orcish ranks held everybody together.

*** FOLIS stood at the front of the line, listening to the carts finally giving way, and gazed into the distance, trying to work out how long it would be before the reinforcements from the West bridge arrived, his Centaur among them. The Satyr who were with him would have to hold until then, or the bridge would fall and over 2,000 Orcs would attack the flanks of Glydoc's force virtually unopposed. He looked upon his charges and was unimpressed. Even with the bolstering presence of Gaia they were shakey. He wasn't sure what to do about it. He could handle his own kind, but these were artists, musicians, poets. There were no soldiers. He would have to hold them together against the toughest force in the lands, an army hardened in their campaign against the Centaurs. It could never be a fight of equals. The barricade failed, and as the Orcs burst through in a rush of metal and growling anger, and arrows whistled from across to the river to find home in the skins of the Satyr defence, he could think of just one thing to cry. "VENGEANCE!"

The fat Orchan spoke with an aura of total confidence, honed in his rise from worker to chieftan. "Ah what do we have here? A Centaur prisoner I presume?" The two guards made to speak, but were interrupted by their charge. Standing tall, the Centaur haughtily answered for them. "I am no captive Seiro, I am Narus. I am sure you've heard of me." Stalium certinly had. Narus was a name he'd heard whispered with revulsion and fear by the dying warlord Kydil, leader of Hersal tribe, as the old Centaur had lain dying after his tribe's destruction. No-one had ever worked out who Narus was, as the loose connections of the clans meant they constantly moved about with no way of tracking traitors.

The defeat of the Orchan detachment led to a short lull while the rest of Selain's army marched slowly towards them. As Folis had hoped, Selain split his forces in two, with half moving to cross the river and attack from the South, the rest moving north to bypass the river and attack from the East in a two pronged attack. Salia estimated 4,000 Orcs and 1,000 Orchan to be moving their way. Of these perhaps 2,500 were heading for the West Bridge, a full ¼ of the total. Folis' plan went perfectly. As the first Orcs reached the middle of the bridge, it gave way with an almighty crash, tumbling down into the rushing waters below and dragging down 200 enemy troops. It stranded over 2,000 more. It would take the enemy hours to get to the next crossing place and start to make an impact. The trap now sprung, troops placed at the bridge as a lure ran to help at the other front, where a first wave of Orcs had reached the wagons and were pushing at them. A fire was quickly set in the cloth under the wagons, making this far harder, but it would be only a matter of time until the horde broke through, and then the deciding battle of two continents would be joined.

Glydoc shouldn't be too difficult to completely rewrite, though we still need to work out how he fits in as an adopter of the Dreagoni (it could be that at the time of Iringold's disappearance he adopted them as it was felt the races weren't capable of looking after themselves, but we can't really sort that out until his personality has been done for definite). I kind of steered away from the Aluwen/Mortos/Glydoc thing to start with, but it shouldn't be too hard to fit in as long as it's done before the creation of the races. It could be an explanation for why he has been trying to destroy the place for so long, because the spirit of EL was hers, not his. I might write a more in-depth version of this later if I have time. Selain I don't think needs tweaking too much, it could be said that the guy had wreaked some small havoc before Mortos talent spotted him but I think that's all it would need. Glilin again needs little in the way of tweaking, except perhaps to make him a bit more jolly in future (perhaps being turned into a god wouold have done that for him?)

Nice one

He could if he strained just make out what was happening. At the centre of the clearing ahead stood the Centaur, held by two Orchans in a vice-like grip. Around the figure was a collection of huge, muscled Orchan leaders lounging carelessly around various smokey fires, chatting quietly among themselves and throwing interested looks towards what was going on. Just a little way off, a fat Orchan who could only be Seiro sat with two of the biggest guards Stalium had ever seen. He was smiling slightly. Seiro hauled himself to his feet, the chubby contours of his body swaying slightly with the effort as Stalium watched. His face was wrinkled and torn from hard work and barfights - it was well known that the chief was a mine-worker made good. His arms bulged with muscle, and his balding head jutted forward, hanging over his eyes and accentuating his (to Stalium) loutish appearance.

Gaia - who hovered above, unable to use her powers to help - quickly rallied her people with whispered words of kindness, and her Satyr regrouped to counterattack as the Centaur, with Folis once again leading from the front, fought on. Eventually, after several minutes of confused rushing about, 300 Satyr managed to join the Centaur troops, pressing enough weight onto the Orchan forces to force them back off the bridge. Soon the other Satyr followed, breaking as a tsunami over what Orchans remained and routing them. They had held by the skin of their teeth. As soon as he saw the Orchans begin to run, Folis roared at everyone to get back behind the bridge, then began to reorganise the army. He spread their forces between the two bridges, the fastest troops at the West bridge, slower and wounded at the Eastern. Final supporting beams were pulled out of the weakened West bridge, terminally weakening the structure.

He followed quietly in the direction of the now fading voices, willing himself to be even more silent and slinking close to the ground, to the shadows, as the guard pickets drew close. Stalium grew tense as his every step seemed to crash like thunder, his fur snagged on twigs which snapped with the crack of lightning. Around him the sounds and smell of the Orchans carrying the Centaur slowed, and there were more voices before finally their footsteps began to reverberate on open ground - the centre of the camp. Stalium crept as far forward as he dared, mere feet in the pitch-black shadows from an alert and (from the smell) extremely large guard.

Have done but not recently cos I've had too much on ------------------------------ Salia shied away from the sheer number, and turned his head to watch the Satyr advance. The race between them and the Orchan skirmishers was going right down to the last few yards. Already half of his kin were across the bridge, spreading out in a panting mass along the edge of the river and shouting their comrades on, but only a hundred yards behind, the Orchan had let out a terrifying bellow and begun to charge the back ranks. Those few Centaur left with working bows and arrows let fly a volley to take down the front row, tripping several who came after, but it was too little. Orchan iron cut down dozens as the back ranks panicked and pushed towards the other side of the bridge, and a brave counter charge by the Centaur barely held their pursuers from crossing.